Hermione was running towards the Chamber of Secrets with Ron in tow. He had the Marauder's Map in one of his hands while the other was inside his robes, clutching his wand tightly. He knew this wasn't going to be easy.

They entered Martyle's bathroom and stood near the sink.

"Alright, Ron. It is time. Prove me that you can actually learn something," Hermione said in a mocking way.

Ron grimaced his teeth for a moment but hid it from Hermione. It didn't matter anyway. A few minutes from now and everything will go according to the plan. Handing the map to Hermione, he stepped forward and closed his eyes, focussing the Parseltongue ability Harry had taught him during their hunt for the horcruxes.

"Open."

Hermione shivered a little. Though she knew it was just a language, but hearing it still was spooky.

A rumbling sound echoed throughout the bathroom as the sink-head rose up in the air and soon, they were standing over the Chamber's entrance. Hermione was looking at it with awe. She hadn't been down there.

"Don't you think it's a bit dirty, you know, to slide down this sewer?" Hermione asked.

"Don't worry. This bathroom hasn't been in use for years. In our second year, Harry and I had slid down and it was completely dry and clean apart from a few bones and dust. But nothing 'sewery' I tell you," Ron said.

And with that, he jumped in the tunnel, soon followed by Hermione.

Harry was going towards the Room of Requirement. He felt grateful to be able to listen to Luna's words before he was going for a blind hunt. Now he knew where the horcrux was. Climbing up the stairs, tearing the crowd of frightened children, he made his way up to the seventh floor, unaware that he was being followed.

He entered the Room of Hidden Things as he wished for it and before the door could close, three others also entered as well.

Harry had only been in this room just once when he and Ginny had come to hide away Snape's potions book. It would take him an eternity to find the horcrux here and since it was something that couldn't be summoned, Harry knew he would have to use the last resort.

And so it was that he closed his eyes and focussed on his hearing. He had experienced this before how he could hear the horcruxes. This ability of his became active only after Voldemort was resurrected during his fourth year. It was so because before that, he couldn't hear any voice coming from Tom's diary during his second year. Maybe it was because of the connection he shared with Tom. He wasn't completely sure about that and at the moment, he didn't even care. Ha had a soul to destroy and he wasn't going to be late in that work.

Thankfully, unlike the entire castle, this room was devoid of any shouting or screaming of students and some staff. He was alone here (he was wrong).

After focussing for a few minutes, as he walked through the tall towers of what he would, at the moment, call junk, he heard a faint clicking sound coming from his left. His feet stopped and he turned. As he then moved forward, the sound increased. He was going in the right direction. He knew when he would be near the horcrux because of the curse's tempting charms.

He was surprised at what he found a couple moments later. It was a wooden table where his or rather Snape's book was kept. Maybe Ginny had hid it here as she had told Harry to close his eyes while she hid the book. But why here? The voice was distinctly clear in his head. The horcrux was calling to him, making him tempted to touch it. But it couldn't be the book. Harry would've known.

Then he looked at the other thing that was on that small table. An ornate box. It was plain and simple but still an ornate box, probably to keep a necklace in it. It had a shiny wooden making and it looked very old. Harry cautiously neared his hand towards the box.

'That's it! found you!' he said in mind.

He could feel the curse's temptation on him. But he had a few experiences before with the horcruxes. Also, he put up his Occlumency shields to reduce the effect of the horcrux as he lifted the box and opened it with great care, refraining from touching it.

It was a crown or rather a tiara, as per what Cho had said. There was a huge blue ruby in the middle of it. Well, after all, it was the diadem of Ravenclaw. Closing the box, he took out the bottomless pouch Hermione had made him while she and he were tracking down horcruxes after Ron had left them. He placed the box carefully inside it. The pouch was made of dragon hide which Harry had brought during his Hogsmead weekend at his fifth year.

Click!

Harry quickly turned around. He saw three Slytherins pointing their wands at him. He wasn't surprised seeing them.

"Well, well. What brings you here, Potter?" Draco asked.

"I could ask you the same," Harry said calmly.

"You have something of mine. I'd like it back," Draco said.

"What's wrong with the one you already have?" Harry asked.

"It's my mother's. It's powerful but...it's not the same. Doesn't quiet understand me," Draco said.

"Why didn't you tell her? Bellatrix?" Harry asked. "You knew it was me. You didn't say anything."

Draco paled a little but it wasn't noticeable due to his already pale feature. Harry saw Draco's hand dangled a bit. His doubt was clearing now.

Goyle saw Draco hesitating to kill Harry so he encouraged him. But it didn't help at all. Draco was frozen. Though his wand was pointing at Harry, he was, like, petrified where he stood.

"What's the matter, Draco?" Harry asked.

Draco's eyes widened. Harry had never called him by his first name. Why now? Did he know? But that couldn't be possible. Not even his own family knew that.

"Come on, Draco! Don't be a prat! Kill him," Goyle said a bit louder this time but when Draco didn't move an inch, Goyle looked at the third Slytherin, Zabini and they both nodded as they looked at each other.

Harry quickly conjured an iron slab as two killing curses were fired at him. The slab exploded with a bang, momentarily deafening him but at least he was alive. The shockwave had thrown him on the floor. Harry got up and ran. Goyle and Blaise pursued him.

Hermione blinked as she tried to look at her attacker. It had happened so sudden she couldn't protect herself. As she regained her senses after her hard fall on the tiled floor of the Chamber, she remembered everything.

[FLASHBACK]

Ron spoke in parseltongue another time as he and Hermione stood at the round metal gate with snakes all over it. As it opened, Ron went ahead first and Hermione followed him. It was a good strategy because Ron had been here before but not this far ahead either. As per what he and Harry had told her after the end of their second year, thanks to Lockhart, the cave which the two had recently crossed was crumbled down and Harry, being the only one to have crossed the cave first, decided to continue going ahead and Ron had stayed behind to clear the rubbles from their path.

As he and Hermione climbed downstairs, she couldn't believe what she actually saw. The place was far bigger than the great hall, which was the biggest room in the entire castle. Large, silver snake heads with fangs and a slithering tongue were 'statued' on either sides of the tiled floor. And in front of her, a few metres ahead, Hermione saw a large head statue of Salazar Slytherin. She recognized him. Anyone could've because of his pictures in various books of the magical world.

And then she saw what made her spine shiver.

Beside the statue laid a huge skeleton of a reptile. It was a basilisk. What else could it be? It was now official that the monster of the Chamber was a basilisk. But Hermione could still not believe what she saw. It was probably sixty, no wait, seventy foot long and as wide as a metro train.

And Harry had killed it all alone by himself?

She felt her head go light when Ron grabbed her attention.

"Hermione, come on, we don't have much time," Ron said.

"Are you not surprised to see the basilisk?" she asked.

"I am," he said in a completely calm voice," "but we have things to do."

"Right," she said and the two made their way towards the basilisk. Hermione conjured a cloth glove and wore it in her hand. Though she knew the poison of the basilisk was inside the fangs but she didn't want to take a risk on anything.

She grasped the long fang which was almost thirty centimetres long and pulled it out of the structure. It came out pretty easily. She collected a few fangs as well and then backed away from the boney beast.

"You do it," Ron said as he handed the golden cup towards her.

"I...I can't," Hermione said.

"Don't worry. It will be okay. These things affect me more than you and Harry. I don't want to do anything reckless by touching it. You are a better choice," Ron said.

He then kept the cup on the floor and backed away a few steps, clearing the path for Hermione to do the job.

With trembling hand, she crouched down and then looked up at Ron once more. He nodded at her and she nodded back. And then, taking in a long breathe, she let the fang connect with the cup as hard as she could let it.

A slimy, black, dirty thing escaped the cup as a deafening shriek echoed throughout the Chamber. Hermione fell when she tried to run backwards. Thankfully, none of that muddy black slime fell on her.

And in a moment it was all gone.

"You did it!" Ron said as he pulled her up and hugged her tight.

Hermione returned the hug and then broke it. She then looked at Ron for a moment and then reduced the gap between their faces. Ron's eyes widened as he realized what Hermione was going to do but then a smirk crossed his face which Hermione failed to notice as Ron kissed her first.

Hermione relished herself in that kiss as she kissed him deeply when suddenly she felt a sharp cutting pain on her chest and belly and she was thrown away by a huge shock.

[PRESENT]

Hermione felt the pain. It felt worse than the pain she had felt from that ugly curse during their fight at the ministry in their second year. As her vision cleared a bit, she saw Ron standing over her, his face down and a grin on his lips.

"R...Ron?" she mumbled as she tried to get up but couldn't because of the pain.

"And there goes the brightest witch of her generation. Or should I say the brightest mudblood?" Ron said as he played with his wand in his hands.

Hermione felt for her wand as she tried to ran her hands over her pocket.

"Looking for this?" Ron said as he pulled out her wand from his robes. "Took it away when you fainted."

"Wh...why?" Hermione asked with teary eyes.

"Maybe I should tell you now. Won't make a difference at all because you are going to die either way, and so is Potter," Ron said.

Hermione's eyes widened when she heard that.

"No need to panic, mudblood. I will tell you what I can, considering what little time you have left to breathe," Ron said. "I was never your friend. Never. I was told to spy on you, or rather say, Harry. And the best way to do that was to befriend him. And then you tagged along and made Harry to see with rational thinking. It started to jeopardise the plans we had for Harry so we decided to remove you from our way."

Hermione listened with horror in her eyes. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Wh...who...?"

"Dumbledore, of course. He had his own plans for Harry. And he was a key part in Dumbledore's plans. Do you know Harry has one horcrux inside him? And in order to destroy it, he has to die? Not surprising though. A mental bookworm like you should've figured it out by now as to why Harry could hear the horcruxes and why could he look into You Know Who's mind. It is such a pity. Well, now that you are out of our way, Dumbledore will be happy. All that's left now is Harry and he's been taking care of," Ron said.

Hermione couldn't believe it. Dumbledore was alive! But everyone had seen his dead body last year. Harry himself had witnessed Snape killing him. How could this be? Then her mind went towards Harry. Ron had mentioned that Harry was being taken care of. He was in danger and he might not know that. But Hermione felt too weak to even move. The floor was covered with her blood. She felt her sight getting blurred. She felt her life leaving her body. The boy she had loved had betrayed her and Harry. For seven years! And they never knew anything about it! And it was all Dumbledore's plan? She had suspected him with his peculiar plans he had for Harry but she shrugged them aside thinking he was Dumbledore. And he could do something like this to them? What was he planning? And how had he evaded his own murder? Pomfrey had declared him dead that night. How could he be alive?

A lot of things were running inside her head right now and she couldn't do anything to solve it. She couldn't even warn Harry. For the first time in her life, she felt so helpless and weak. Those feelings were even worse than she had felt when she had wiped the memories of herself from her parents' mind.

Then she heard a rumbling sound and turned her head- as much as she could- towards the source. It was the gate of the Chamber. Someone was coming down. She couldn't make it out but he was tall and wore a robe. The darkness inside the Chamber also hindered her remaining ability to see. But as the newcomer approached her and Ron, Hermione's eyes grew wider and wider.

Dumbledore!

Harry felt his life force being flushed for a moment as he tried to evade from two death eaters currently in his pursuit. He had felt it before, during his second year and when he had destroyed the locket. And he could make out what had happened. Ron and Hermione had destroyed the cup.

He stumbled as he tried to shook himself to give off the feeling as he kept running around the room, evading green curses. He was surprised, not at Blaise, but at Goyle, who's precision with his wand casting was marvellous. Harry thought whether the fat blob was trained after he had become a death eater or what. But this wasn't the time to appraise his attacker. This was the time to save his arse from them. Harry wished he had some training to duel or fight with death eaters to prove his ground. But no one had trained him. He couldn't blame them. Sirius was in prison and now dead. Remus had to recuperate for at least a week after his monthly transformation. After that, he was busy with the Order meetings and other stuff. Arthur hesitated, which Harry had still not understood why. The professors didn't had time because of the school stuff and also that all of them were members of the Order.

He had no one to train. Dumbledore could've but he just showed him those memories of Tom and then he was murdered.

Swoosh!

Another killing curse passed almost touching his jacket and Harry ducked. But then he felt heat. Extreme heat! And then yellow.

He turned to look at the cause and his eyes widened.

Gregory Goyle had casted a fyndfire curse and wasn't able to control him. it was still coming out of his wand and was spreading like anything inside the room. Blaise- from time to time- casted a Protego to prevent himself from the fire which headed for him from time to time. Unfortunately, his luck didn't hold him for long and he was burnt right in front of him. Harry's nose twitched as he smelled the burning flesh in the air. Seeing Goyle too busy to control his curse, Harry saw a window and ran.

Turning left and right and back, he saw most of the part of the room was covered in fire. He made his way towards the exit when he saw a few brooms in one corner. Instincts kicked inside him and he grabbed one and a moment later, he was flying through the raging fire below him. The heat was unbearable but he had no choice. He wanted to get out of this room as soon as possible.

As he kept flying through the fire, he saw Draco was standing at one of the furniture towers, saving himself from the fire underneath him. Something kicked inside Harry and he knew this feeling. Not to mention he hated it most of the time but not now.

He let his quidditch form wake inside him and he ducked.

"Draco!" he cried as he flew towards his nemesis.

Draco looked up and for a moment couldn't believe his eyes. But then he felt the heat and rose up his hand.

Harry caught his hand like a professional and pulled Draco up and on his broom.

"Th...thanks," Draco stuttered.

Harry smiled slightly.

"You can thank me by making a way," Harry said, "as I am holding the broom."

Draco understood at once and took out his wand and pointed it ahead Harry, towards the wall of fire they were heading towards. Harry felt a gust of wind pass beside his ear and a hole opened in the fire wall. Harry ducked his body down and increased his speed and they made it out of the room unharmed.

Harry quickly landed the broom and jumped off of it before Draco could and quickly took out the pouch from his jacket. He then threw it straight into the fire before the door leading to the room closed. Harry knew the horcrux was destroyed beaus he felt it being destroyed. Fyndfire was an option he knew that could destroy horcruxes and it was their last resort of they failed to find any weapons for Tom's anchors.

Draco hurriedly got up behind Harry and ran out of the room. Harry turned to look at him go but then stopped as he looked upon him. He was glowing. And before he could think anything, he was gone.

"What! Where did she go?" Ron exclaimed as he and Dumbledore looked at the now red and bloodied floor where Hermione lay a few seconds ago. "How can she just vanish out in thin air?"

Dumbledore still looked at the floor, his eyes twinkling with hate, rage and confusion at what he saw. Hermione was laying in front of him, bleeding and closing to her death and all of a sudden, her body began to glow and she was gone! How could this happen? It wasn't a portkey's cause nor did anyone can apparate inside Hogwarts. This was something else. And Dumbledore swore for a moment that he sensed something very very powerful.